Jnana marga (Hinduism)

Ignorance, or avidya, prevents the seeker from seeing things as they really are and is based on maya, illusion. The whole material world is the result of this illusion. It is ignorance which causes samsara, the cycle of birth, death and rebirth; therefore by destroying ignorance one can eventually obtain release from samsara. This does not imply salvation through knowledge such as learning the scriptures, the law and so on, but true knowledge of the Atman, the Self, as Brahman, the Self-existent Absolute. This is the knowledge of the Vedanta as taught in the Upanishads and has come to be known as advaita, non-duality.

Other approaches to jnana marga – the Sankhya school – put emphasis on the deliverance from samsara through knowledge of purusa (soul or spirit) as utterly distinct from prakriti (matter); the connection between the two is only apparent. Prakriti would remain unconscious if not acted upon by purusa; and the sufferings of prakriti are no longer experienced when not illuminated by purusa. The yoga system of Patanjali is closely connected with this school, although the final aim is union of the individual soul with God, here referred to as Isvara.

One of the three ways of salvation of orthodox Hinduism, the others being karma marga and bhakti marga. No one is said to be complete without some influence of the other two.